Power operator



Jan. 31, 1933. P. w. CUMMINGS POWER OPERATOR mings 42 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR Pggston WICum ATTORNEYS Filed May 28, 1950 1 Jan. 31, 1933.

P. w. CUMMINGS 1,895,880

POWER OPERATOR Filed May 28, 1930 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 A C Ju 4 INVENTOR Preston 14 C'ammzngs ZZZ/am, 40%

ATTORNEY-5 name Jan. 31. 1933 UNITED STATES rnasron w. commas, or

PATENT .oFFICE' aocxroan, rumors, assrcnoa 'ro nownfi 1). comma,

or nocn'oan, rumors POWER OPERATOR Application filed Kay 88, 1980. Serial 1W0. 458,784.

readily to suit the varying conditions underv which the operator is intended to be used, which operates in either direction of motion of the part to be driven and which exerts a load on the motor that varies automatically and inversely proportional to the load on said part so that the stalled torque of the motor is not diminished.

In carrying out this object, a vane driven from the motor in the operation of the part to be driven is arran ed to rotate in a fluid,

preferably a viscous 'quid, which resists rotation thereby 'and reduces the speed of the motor by an amount determined by the efiective surface area of the vane, which area may be varied conveniently over a relatively wide range. f

Another object is to provide an operating unit mounted in an oil-tight casing and having its parts arranged in a novel manner such was to render them readily accessible and removable for replacement or repair.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a fragmentary view partially in section showing air mixing conduits controlled bydampers arranged for operation by b a unit embodying the features of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a section taken along the line 2-2 of Fig. 1. j

Fig. 3 is an elevational view of the operating unit with a part of the enclosing casing shown in section. I

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 4-4 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view of a universal coupling embodied in the operator.-

do not thereby intend to limit the invention a common lane. Thus by shifting the link Fig. 6 is a schematic view and wiring diagram of the control mechanism.

While the invention is susceptible of various modifications and alternative constructions, I have shown inthe drawin s and will herein describe in detail the pre erred embodiment, but it is to be understood that I to the s ecific form disclosed, but intend to cover a modifications and alternative const-ructions falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as expressed in the appended claims- In the illustrative embodiment shown in the drawings, the improved operator is utilized to actuate a valve of the damper t by which the temperature of air dischar e into a sin le conduit 10 may be regulate accurately lay controlling the flow of cool and heated air through separate inlet ducts 11 and 12. The proportion of hot and cold air delivered to the mixed air conduit is determined by the relative positions of separate dampers in the cold and hot air ducts, each dam er comprising a plurality of flat vanesl13 ournaIed on central end trunnions in a frame 15 near the duct outlet.

To move the vanes of each damper in unison, one edge of eachvane is pivotally connected to a bar 16 which is joined by a link 17 to the bar'of the other damper. With this arrangement, one damper will be open when the other is completely closed, that is, when the vanes of the latter are disposed in 17 into di erent positions any desired proportion of hot and cold air may be obtained and the temperature in the conduit 10 maintained at the desired value. In the present instance the operator prope is mounted on a frame disposed withm and secured by screws 18 to the bottom of a casing 19 which constitutes a receptacle for containing lubricating oil to a level such as to immerse the major arts of the o rator. The frame is composed of spaced stan ards 20 upstanding from the bottom of the casing with their upper ends enclosed by a removable cover 21.

Journaled inthe upper ends :of the 100 .standards20 is a shaft 22 which is driven from a train 23 of'spur gears supported between one standard 20 and an intermediate to be energized constantly from a source of a alternating current. To create a-torque for initiating rotation of the motor in either di-. rection', two sets 29 and 30 of shading coils are mounted on the stator poles and each acts in a manner well understood in the art to produce a shifting magnetic field across the pole face to which the rotor 31 is exposed. By rendering one or the other set of shading coils operative, the motor may be started in either direction, the extent of such movement being determined by the length of time during which the shading coils are operative.

While the starting of. the operator may be governed by any desired instrumentalit a thermostat 32 is shown herein arrange to close circuits through the difierent shading coils selectively and automatically. For this purpose, a common terminal of the shading coils is connected by a .c'onductor33. to the ,tongue of the thermostatic element 34: which cooperates with spaced contacts to form two switches 35 and 36. The latter are connected respectively by conductors 37 and 38 to the insulated terminals of the shading coils 29 and 30. I

When the temperature to which the thermostat is positioned to respond fallsbelow the range predetermined by the setting of the thermostat, the circuit through one set 501? shading coils will be closed and the motor will start to rotate in a direction to open the 'warmair damper and close the cold air dampor, thereby increasing the temperature of the mixed air. In a similar way, reverse move- ;ment of the dampers will-be initiated when the thermostat detects an increase in temperature and starts the motor in the reverse direction.

In order to limit the movement of the shaft 22 to the quarter revolution required to 'rnove either damper from open to closed position,

switches 39 and 40 are interposed in the con- 6 ing as a follower for a cam at mounted on the ductors 37 and 38 and adapted to be opened as incidents ,to the movement of the shaft. These switches are disposed in the upper portion of the enclosing casing and each is formed by a stationary contacton an insulat i'ng block. 41- and a movable contact on a spring arm 42 secured to a block 43 and acting continued operation of the motor in the samedirection but permitting reverse rotation.

The switches 39 and 40 and their associated binding terminals are'thus located so as to be readily accessible after draining the oil from the casing and removing the cover 21. The conductors 33, 37 and 38 and the current supplying conductors are led into the casing 19 through a plug 46 and their ends are removably connected within the casing to the termin'als for the difierent motorwind-ings which terminals are supported by an insulated bar i7. The latter is located just above the motor and all of the terminals are-conveniently accessible by reason of the location of the cams at at the opposite end of the shaft 22. Thus the conductors can-be disconnected readily from the power unit to permit removal of the latter from the casing.

The movement of the shaft 22 is imparted to the dampers through the medium of a shaft 48 projecting through one side of the casing 19 andjournaled in an elongated bearing 19..

52 rigid respectively with'the adjacent endsof the two shafts and a universal late 53 having two lugs 54 projecting into d1ametri-.

cally opposite notches in the disk 51 and similar lugs 55 extending into notchesin the disk" 52. The universal joint thus formed permits the two shafts to be disconnected by movement of the operating umt m an axial direction away fromthe shaft 48. In this way, the operating unit maybe removed conveniently from the oil bath after removal of.

the screws18 by which the operator is secured to the casing.

Incorporated in the universal jomt construction is a means which forms an effective.

oil seal between the shaft 48 and its bearing. This means comprises a coiled spring mounted on the reduced end of the shaft 22 and acting in compression to urge the shaft 48 outwardly. Thefenlarged conical surface 57 of the latter is thereby pressed tightly into a seat 58 in the shaft ring which efiectually prevents escape of oil from. the casing.

In order that the operator above described 7 will be adapted for universal use under the difierent'conditions encountered in the use of dampers inair conditioning systems, a simple and effective means is provided for enabling the speed of operation of the motor to be adjusted over .a relatively wide range. For this purpose, advantage is taken of the fact that a fluid such as the oil in the casing 19 offers 'a resistance to the rotation of a body having a vane surface immersed in the fluid, which resistance is proportional to the speed of rotation of the motor and therefore changes automatically with variation in the load im osed upon the motor by the valve. The spe overning means herein employed is in the 0m of a propeller or paddle wheel 59 removably mounted on one of the high speed shafts, of the operator, preferably the motor shaft 26 and having a plurality of vanes or blades- In theoperation of the motor in opposite directions, the opposite side surfaces of the.

vanes, move broadwise through and dis lace a considerable quantity of the oil which t ereby exerts a resisting force on the motor and revents it from developing normal speed. he decrease in the motor speed and therefore the rate of movement of the damper is of course, dependent upon the size of the e ective surface area ofsthe propeller vanes and the viscosity of the liquid. Thus, by simply replacing the wheel 59 by one having larger or smaller vanes, the workman installing the operator adjusts the-s d of the operator quickly and convenient y to suit the particular conditions under which the operator is used. Substitution of different gears or other impracticable methods of speed changing are thus avoided. The present speed adjusting means is also advantageous in that it permits the speed of the damper to be reduced without increasing the torque on-the driven shaft, thereby permitting the motor to be stalled before damage is done to the parts in the event that the damper becomes blocked.

By immersing the propeller in a relatively viscous fluid such as oil, a relatively small propeller may be employedewhich lends to the compactnessof the operator as a whole in that a smatler gear train may be employed in order to produce the reduction in the motor speed required to effect a slow and graduated movement of the dampers.-

The adjustable speed governor thus provided is particularly suited for use in the environment above described because it operates automatically as an incident to rotation of the motor and effects a reduction in the motor speed wihout decreasing the available torque of the motor. This is for the reason that torque exerted by the liquid resisting rotation of the motor varies with the square of the speed of the propeller. Therefore, as the load on the motor increases due to a change in the damper position. or other causes, the speed of the motor is reduced in the above ratio which effects a corresponding reduction in the torque applied to the motor shaftb the oil. When the paddle wheel is at a stan still, the full motor torque is available. In this way, the speed governor adjusts itself automatically to the varyin load the opposite side surfaces of the vanes of the paddle wheel are of the same size and placed at the same inclination relative to the motor shaft. The operator is thus adapted to drive the driven shaft at the same speed in either direction of motor rotation. '4

I claim as my invention: I

- 1. A power operator for imparting a slow and uniform motion to a part to be driven comprising, in combination, a casing constituting a receptacle for liquid lubricant, a shaft projecting froin said casing and-having a driving connection with said part, a ower unit for drivin said shaft immersed 1n the lubricant in 881d casing and including an electric motor and a speed reduction earing driven thereby, and means for governing the rate of motion of said part comprising an interchangeable paddle wheel carried by the shaft of said motor and having a vane which is moved broadwise through the lubricant in the operationof the motor whereby to determine the speed of rotation of the motor.

2. A power operator for imparting a slow and uniform motion to a part to be driven comprising, in combination, a casing containing liquid lubricant, a shaft journaled in said casing and pro'ecting therethrough for connection with sai part, said shaft having an enlarged conical surface near one end of its bearing, an electric driving unit immersed in said lubricant and having a shaft coupled to the inner end of said first mentioned shaft, and means yieldably urging said shaft in an axial direction to press said conical surface against said bearing and thereby prevent the escape of lubricant through the latter.

3. A power operator for imparting a slow and uniform motion to a party to be operated comprising, in combination, a receptacle 0 n at its upper end and containing liquid lu ricant, a rotatable shaft projecting through" said receptacle for connection with said part, a unitary power driving mechanism includ ing a frame mounted within said receptacle, an electric motor and a shaft driven from said motor and mounted on said frame with one end adjacent said first mentimed shaft when the mechanism'is in operative position, and a quick. detachable universal coupling between the ends of-said shafts permitting bodily. removaliofsaid mechanismfrom the receptacle.

4 7 reamed 4. A power operator of the character set forthoom rising, in combinatioman upright frame, a s aft mounted nearthe upper end "of said frame, an electric induction motor 5 supported by said frame below said. shaft, switch means for controlling the motor mounted on said frame above the shaft, a multiplying gear train supported in said frame andinterposed between the shaft and 10 the motor, a casing wholly enclosing said frame and having a shaft to be riven mounted in one wall thereof and connected with said shaft in the frame, said casing containing a bath of oil in which said motor- 1 and-gear tra' are immersed, and means driven by th motor and operable by displacement of the oil in the casing to exert a retarding efiect on said motor, j 4

, Intestimony whereof, I have hereunto afixed my si ature. r

P ESTON W. CUMWGS 

